Genetic Mutation May Lead to Autism Subtype

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http://www.scientificamerican.com/artic ... m-subtype/

interesting.

Very odd indeed, Ive actually started noticing I myself have a rather strangely proportioned skull, I wonder if its a sign I have another A type.

I have a hunch that Auti$m $peaks funded that research and I feel that's a bad thing.

Well I have autism and some kind of genetic mutation, but not that one.....apparently they have not found anyone with the same one as me so its not like an identified and named thing, and even I don't have a very good understanding of what the genetic mutation means for me. I think it is possible genetic mutations could play a role in some cases of autism, interesting topic for sure.

I would not think so. If they did it was probably a few years back. Autism Speaks are all about the "leaky gut" theory these days. If Autism is genetic in nature the we are "born that way" and not diseased/poisoned.

what is leaky gut theory

I understand the very good reasons to dislike Autism Speaks.

But the CHD8 research is factual, not political. How might a tainted source of funding impact the value of identifying this phenotype and the associated genotype?

Can you explain how it's bad?

Also, am I the only one who doesn't think the faces looking "strikingly similar to each other?" I mean, not just a little--they don't look alike at all!

SFARI, the original source of this article, has a larger version: http://sfari.org/images/images-2014/new ... 03newschd8

if we label the faces left to right and in two rows so that they are organized this way:
A, B, C,
D, E, F

I can see a certain resemblance between some faces but others seem very unalike.
For example smiley faces A and C are similar, but it's hard to imagine any way that you could claim B and E as similar or A and F!! !!

I just don't understand what they can possibly mean in calling these faces "Strikingly similar" -- I think there may be a touch of researcher's pareidolia here.

http://www.webmd.com/digestive-disorder ... t-syndrome
http://drhyman.com/blog/2010/05/12/can- ... #openModal
http://www.autismspeaks.org/science/sci ... n-research

Well, the descriptions of facial features (broad foreheads, large skulls, wide-set eyes) certainly describes me, and my dad, and my maternal grandfather...

...and all four of my kids (none of whom have an autism diagnosis). The Boy has an ENORMOUS skull and looks more like Daddy with each passing year; however I have become just about convinced that ADHD is the correct diagnosis. All three girls have very broad foreheads and wide-set eyes. And, so far, no clinically significant evidence of autism.

I also got the impression from the article that this particular mutation was linked to some level of intellectual disability...

...which NO ONE in my direct lineage has. To the best of my knowledge, there is Asperger's all over both sides of the family (more common on my mom's side, with my grandfather, my aunt, me, and at least three cousins that I know of being affected; on my dad's side there is him, me, one other cousin, and a lot of people that show some traits but not enough to be clinically significant). There is, however, only one case of profound/classical autism (and I'm guessing at that-- nobody knows exactly how much of T.'s problems are organic and how much of them came from being kept locked away from the world in a back bedroom) and obvious intellectual disability. The rest of us are "dumb smart people," as the saying goes.

As far as gut issues go...

I do note that it seems to take me longer to move food through my system (versus my husband's in-for-breakfast, out-by-lunch colon). But the only issues with constipation I have ever had resulted from either pregnancy (don't ask-- seriously, don't ask) or retaining stool as a child (some day I really must have a long conversation with my grandmother about her methods of potty training).

My oldest child was prone to constipation in her early years, though I link that directly to an abiding love of potato chips and chocolate milk and a deep hatred of water and any form of fresh plant matter. Some of it, however, could be genetic-- even as an infant, I had to water down her formula by about 1 1/2 ounce per 8 ounce bottle or she'd poop little hard pellets about every third day (with nothing in between). Alarming. Breast-fed the other three-- far fewer issues of the diaper kind.

I still think autism is much more complicated than 99% of the theories being kicked around out there.

To be fair to these researchers, they don't suggest that this is THE cause of autism, just a cause that may be a factor in 1/2 of 1% of autistics.

How can any researcher say anything about autism at this point. It is just a big bag they throw everyone who is nonverbal and flappy into, especially if they have "behavioral issues". I think that fragile x and downs syndrome are considered additional "single gene" causes of autism demonstrates more that the behavioral identification does not capture this neurological difference. I think that autism is more of a cognitive style that may be better explained by areas of neural overgrowth.